Emperor’s Domination

“No one in the lower continents can do so without anyone knowing, especially not all of them together.” The schoolmaster said: “Well, maybe there is one person capable of this.”

“Conceal Conqueror!” Jian Yunyun blurted out but thought that this was improper.

“I see…” Ming Shi said but Yunyun pulled her sleeve, telling her to stop speaking.

This was indeed the right answer but the schoolmaster didn’t wish to be so direct. Moreover, the timeline didn’t quite line up.

Nonetheless, she was the only person capable of making a five or six fruits dragon lords disappear without unnecessary commotion. Even the great Stone Ox couldn’t do so.

After all, people didn’t forget about how she ambushed and killed Heavenpeak Conqueror despite having one less fruit.

The problem was that they had disappeared far before her current achievements. She didn’t have the power to do so back then.

“Why were they chosen as targets? What are the connections between them?” Yunyun asked.

“Hmm…” The schoolmaster pondered: “There isn’t any, at least not from first glance.”

Divine Empress Dowager belonged to The Alliance from Primal. Void Saint Child came from Immortal Platform and Sword Lord was from the academy. As for Phenomena Conqueror, he was from Lunar.

“There is one similarity.” Li Qiye spoke: “Their power.”

“Their power!” The schoolmaster repeated and became emotional.

“Wait, back then…” He suddenly recalled something and fell into rumination.

“In other words, they’re only picking those with four dao fruits or five sacred fruits and up.” Li Qiye said.

“What’s the reason?” Ming Shi asked.

“Because they have to leave.” Yunyun answered.

“Yes, cultivators at that level should ascend to the two upper continents.” The schoolmaster agreed.

Conceal and Eight-stallion were historically rare cases of powerful cultivators choosing not to leave. The missing cultivators were gone at the right opportunity to ascend.

“Is it because the timing makes it harder to notice their disappearance?” Ming Shi asked.

“That is definitely one reason. People will think that they have left for the two continents.” The schoolmaster said.

For example, this certainly applied to Phenomena Conqueror. Most assumed that he was in the upper continents now, the exception being Bloodsea Blade.

“Hmm, are there any other explanations?” Yunyun wondered.

“The fruits are ripe so it is time to pluck.” Li Qiye smiled.

“!!” The schoolmaster’s expression darkened after hearing this: “That’s a bold speculation.”

“What fruits?” Ming Shi was innocent and didn’t understand the implication.

“Someone is trying to rob their… A supreme existence in on the hunt?” Yunyun didn’t finish the sentence while thinking back about her sect’s broken bone. This made her feel an ominous chill.

“You think too highly of whatever is going on here.” Li Qiye shook his head: “A supreme overlord does not need to hunt conquerors and dragon lords. They can just open their mouth and devour all three continents.”

“Impossible!” Ming Shi said: “These are continents we’re talking about, not a piece of meat.”

On the other hand, the schoolmaster was aware of these dark matters and felt fear.

“You’re right, someone is hunting them.” He eventually said, taking his time thinking about the possibilities.

“We can deduce it down a bit. This won’t be a supreme overlord since they do not care about weak conquerors and dragon lords. Whoever this is, they have the power to capture a six-fruit dragon lord or a four-fruit conqueror, perhaps in total secrecy.”

“So it should be a five-fruit conqueror or a seven or eight-fruit dragon lord.” Yunyun said. The only person matching this description and the timeline was Stone Ox.

“It can’t be our ancestor, he never left Untethered before.” Ming Shi vehemently denied.

Stone Ox was unique in that his original form was a rock demon. He had taken roots with the earth and couldn’t leave Untethered.

Therefore, the possibility of him hunting them was rather low. First, he would need to bait them into Untethered. Getting one could be plausible but all four?

He couldn’t lure so many big shots there and capture them without being noticed by others.

“Hmm, let’s think about the timeline again. Phenomena Conqueror and the others have been missing for around ten thousand years now. Did anyone else disappear more recently?” Yunyun suggested.

“Hard to say.” The schoolmaster responded.